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To appreciate fully the distance England have travelled this season, the man to ask is Louis Deacon. Back in the autumn he was lying in his darkened bedroom, wondering if the morning would provide relief from the back pain that was threatening his livelihood. The notion of a regular starting role for England, let alone a pivotal part in a potentially Six Nations-winning side, was barely conceivable.

Four months on and the 30-year-old Leicester lock finds himself a central pillar in the England side that will face Scotland on Sunday. England have had 38 lineouts in the tournament and with Deacon on board they have won 36 of them. Courtney Lawes and Simon Shaw may have a higher profile but it is Deacon who has possession of Martin Johnson's old shirt. In many ways his sudden change of luck sums up England's collective improvement. In the hunt for fresh talent it can be easy to forget that existing squad members can also get better. Deacon is not as eye-catching as Lawes or Gloucester's Dave Attwood but he had one of the games of his life against France. Having been sidelined with back problems until as recently as mid-November, the national side's recent success has illuminated what was a long, dark personal tunnel.

"I wouldn't say I was worried about my career or thinking about retirement but I just didn't see when it would get better," Deacon says of his back problem. "Some days I'd feel really good but a couple of hours later it would come back again. The worst point was going to bed at night. You'd be hoping you'd wake up in the morning and be OK, but it wasn't. It's not just the physical side, it's the mental side too. It wears you down. If you'd asked me four months ago if I'd be playing for England again I'd have said, 'No chance.' I didn't think I'd be playing for Leicester this season, let alone England. Now I feel the best I have done for a long, long time."

Deacon also reveals that he was struggling with his back during last year's championship – "I played most of the Six Nations games last season but I was carrying an injury," he says – which is another reason why he looks more effective now. He also confirms that England have shed the fear factor which held them back for so long. "In the past the guys, not just myself, have been a bit afraid to express ourselves on the field because you think you'll make a mistake," he says. "It's not about that. You've got to go out there and try things, as you would do for your club. Everybody's learned to do that."

With this positive emphasis grafted on to a settled squad, England are in real danger of going places. Mike Ford, their defence coach, admitted this week that the management had realised the need to change tactical tack after a disappointing autumn series in 2009. They calculated that England needed to score at least 20 points to win a Six Nations game and 25 to 27 points to beat one of the big southern-hemisphere teams.

"We were getting nowhere near that," said Ford. "We played New Zealand and lost 19-6. They only scored one try but we were never going to win that game in a month of Sundays because we weren't scoring enough points. The mindset in the camp had to change."

And so it has. Players have been encouraged to pull in the same direction. "In the past, players have come in and looked after themselves, thinking about what they need to do to stay in for the next game, being selfish and making sure their [own] performance is all right," said Ford, who has worked hard to foster a more encouraging environment. "It took a while for players to trust us that we wouldn't drop them. We're also empowering the players more now. Maybe we were tell-tell-tell."

Deacon is proof that the change in emphasis has worked. The lineout may be among the stronger parts of Scotland's game but Andy Robinson's men are running into England at a bad time.

"I wouldn't say the way we're playing has changed but people are more comfortable with it," says Deacon, who is well aware that Lawes, fit again after a knee injury, is desperate to regain his place. "I just try and do the unselfish work that sometimes doesn't get noticed."

An English grand slam underpinned by a no-nonsense lock from Leicester? It happened in 2003 and history may yet repeat itself.